BBC iReporter Game Launches to Help Tackle Fake News

BBC iReporter puts the player's accuracy, impact and speed to the test

11-to-18-year-olds are the target for a new interactive BBC game that aims to tackle fake news

The BBC has launched a brand-new online interactive game to help young people identify fake news stories. BBC iReporter, developed by stop-motion animation studio Aardman (creators of Wallace & Gromit), has been designed to give the player a first-hand experience of what it’s like to work in a newsroom, where speed and impact are just as important as maintaining impeccable accuracy.

Set in the BBC newsroom on your first day as a BBC journalist, the game places the player in the midst of a breaking news story, where they’re faced with obstacles that make them question who to trust, when to be cautious and when to be forthright.

The “choose-your-own-adventure” format takes the user through the various pitfalls thrown up by potential “fake news” elements, putting their accuracy, impact and speed to the test. With deadlines looming, rigorous judgement is needed to ensure the right stories are published with credible facts to back them up.

The game, which is available to play now, has been created as just one part of the broader BBC School Report national programme, which is helping 11-to-18-year-olds develop their critical thinking and media literacy skills.

Above, the player is left questioning who to trust and which facts to believe

More than 100 BBC journalists, including Huw Edwards, Tina Daheley and Kamal Ahmed, are also delivering workshops in schools across the UK to support the programme. Schools can sign up to be a part of the pilot here.

Fran Unsworth, Director, News and Current Affairs, said: “The BBC has already been doing a lot to tackle the scourge of fake news – whether through Reality Check fact-checking claims and coming to a judgment, our journalists going into schools to educate youngsters or this brilliant game we’re launching in the UK today.

“But this is a global problem. It’s vital people have access to news they can trust – and know how to distinguish between fact and fiction. Broadcasters and the rest of the news industry have a responsibility to tackle fake news, and I want to use the BBC’s global reach to lead the way.”

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